Method of and apparatus for separating materials



g- 23, 3 c. A. HVALLAM 1,873,394

METHOD UP AND APPARATUS FOR SEPARATING MATERIALS Original Filed Feb. 28, 1927 Wren/0r 6. 4. 6 4/14? Patented Aug. 23, 1932 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE CECIL A. HALLAM, OF WESTFIELD, NEW JEEQSEY, ASSIGNOR TO' WESTERN ELECTRIC COMPANY, INCORPORATED, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK METHOD or AND ArrARA'r srortsErAnATI GMATERIALS Original application filed February 28, 1927, Serial No. 171,581.

Divided and this application filed April 25, 1930. Serial 1101441291.

This invention relates to a method of separating materials, and more particularly to a method of and an apparatus for removing insulation from electrical conductors and separating the insulating materials and the conductors, and is a. division of my co-pending application Serial No. 171,581, filed February 28, 1927. p

Objects of the invention are to provide an efficient and effective method of reclaiming mixed materials into their separate component parts.

The invention contemplates the provision of a method and an apparatus in which paper insulated electrical conductors of telephone cables'vare disintegrated and the insulation removed after which the material is introduced into an air current of a progressively decreasing velocity in which the larger metallic particles of the material are dropped out, and the'remaining material is subjected to a series of screening operations to complete the separation.

It is believed that a complete understanding ofthe invention may be had by reference to the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawing, in which Fig. 1 is a side elevation, partially schematic and partly in section, of a separating apparatus, adapted to remove paper insulation from copper conductors and then separate the materials, and

Fig. 2 is a circuit diagram of a device for .timing the operations of a charging and a discharging motor of a circulatory separatin device. I

eferring to the drawing in which the same reference characters designate similar parts in the several views, a cutting mechanism 19 is provided at the receivingend of the apparatus. Before being fed into the cutting mechanism 19, the conductors are preferably reduced to sizes of approximately six inches in length. The conductors are then subjected to a dismtcgratlng action in the cutting mechanism which reduces the conductors to sizes of about one inch in length and removes substantially all of the papcr nsulation therefrom. The particular cutting mechanism disclosed is especially adapted to remove wrapped paper insulation in which the Width of the paper wrapped is approximately equal to the lengths lnto which the conductors are cut in the mechanism 19.

The material is conveyed from the cutting mechanism to a separating chamber 22 by means of an air current produced by a fan 23. The lower end of the separating chamber 22' is provided with an annular drum 24 in which an air pressure is maintained by means of a fan 25 and which communicates with the separating chamber by means of an annular outlet 26. The annular outlet 26 of the drum 24 is frustum-shaped withits apex directed upwardly so as to create an upward air current of a high velocity in the restricted lower portion 27 of the separating chamber, which is so constructed that various velocities will be encountered in the different portions of the chamber. When the material enters the chamber, the lighter portions will be carried upwardly and the heavier portions will drop downwardly and through an exit 21 into any suitable receptacle. In the restricted portion 27 of the separating chamber, the velocity is such as to permit only the copper materials to drop downwardly and the velocity in an upper expanded portion 20 of the chamber is such as to be sufiicient to raise only the-paper particles. If any copper particles are present in the chamber to which paper is attached they will be suspended and agitated between the restricted and the expanded portions of the chamber until'they are. separated when the copper will be dropped through the exit and the paper and small particles of copper dust will be carried by an air current into a rotary cylindrical sieve 28.- The air from the separating chamber is permitted to pass into a stack 29 provided with a screen 32. Much of the copper (lust which is present in the paper will'be separated from the paper by the screen 28 rotated by a motor 3i and passed out of an exit 33 into any suitable reriodically operated gate 37. When the gate 37 is opened, a fan 38 draws the material from the hopper into a circulatory system 39 whereupon the gate 37 is again closed. A rotary disk screen 42 is located in the system against which the paper and dust is thrown. Some of the dust will pass through the screen and through an exit 40 into any suitable receptacle while the paper will be ricocheted or deflected from the screen and contlnue through the system to repeat the cycle. After the material has completed approximately forty-five cycles, requiring about as many seconds, all of the dust will be sepa-' rated from the paper and a gate 43 Wlll be operated to discharge the paper into a hopper 44 from which the air may pass through a screen 45 and the paper is permitted to drop thoroughly cleaned through an exit 46 into any suitable receptacle. A screen 47 is provided in the circulatory system to pernnt the fan 38 to draw airinto the system and discharge the material when the gate 43 is in the proper position to discharge the material. In order to prevent the disk screen 42 from becoming clogged by the dust particles, a brush 50 is mounted so as to continuously sweep the upper surface of the screen and the dust particles which are accumulated thereby are carried off by'a pipe 51 whlch 1s connected to the circulatory system on the low pressure side of the fan 38.

The gates 37 and 43 of the circulatory system are actuated by motors 48 and 49, respectively, which are operated in timed relation by a mechanism comprising an insulated disk 52 provided with a conducting strip 53 and a rack 54 which supports four carbon brushes 55 which successively contact with the conducting strip as the insulated disk is rotated. The disk 52 is continuously rotated at uniform speed in the counterclockwise direction by any suitable means (not shown). nected to one side of any suitable source of I electric current (not shown), while two of the brushes 55 are connected to each of the motors. The motors 48 and 49 may be of the type having double and oppositely wound fields so that contacting the conducting strip with one of the brushes would cause the motors to rotate in a forward direction and contacting with the other of the brushes-connected to the motor would operate the motor in a reverse direction. If the insulating disk shown in Fig. 2 is rotated in a counter-clockwise direction the conducting strip will first contact with a brush of the motor 49 and energize the motor 49 to operate the gate 43 in such a direction as to discharge the paper from the circulatory system. The conducting strip will then contact with the second brush of the motor 9, reversing its direction and closing the gate 43. Immediately thereafter the insulating strip will come in contact The conducting strip 53 is con-.

with the first brush of motor 48, energizing the motor 48 to open the gate 37 and allowing a new charge to enter the system. The conducting strip will then contact With the last brush of the motor 48, reversing its di- It-will be understood that the embodiment of the invention herein described and illustrated is merely a convenient and useful form of the invention-which is capable of many other modifications without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.

What is claimed is:

1. A method of separating metallic particles from a lighter material, which consists in conveying the mixed materials by a lateral air current into an upward air current of greater than atmospheric. density and or such velocity that the free'metal-lic particles drop therethrough while the free lighter particles are carried upwardly thereby, separating adhering particles of the metal and the lighter material by reducing the velocity of the air currents above the conflux of the air currents to such a value that the adhering particlesare suspended therein and thereby agitated, and removing the thus separated lighter particles from the air current.

2. A method of separating a mixture of metal with a lighter material, which consists in comminuting the mixed materials, conveying the comminuted materials by a lateral air current into an upward air current of greater than atmospheric density and of such velocity that the free metallic particles drop therethrough while the free lighter particles are carried upwardly thereby, and separating adhering particles of the metal and the lighter material by reducing the velocity of the air currents above the conflux of the air currents to such a value that the adhering particles are suspended therein and thereby agitated.

3. A method of separating mixed copper and paper particles, which consists in comminuting the mixed particles, conveying the comminuted particles by a lateral air current into an upwardly projected air current of such velocity that the free copper particles drop therethrough, passing the free paper particles and the adhering copper and paper particles upwardly, separating the adhering copper and paper particles by subjecting them to an air current of lower velocity than that of the first mentioned air current in a zone above the conflux of the air currents to thereby suspend and agitate the adhering particles, and removing the thus separated combined currents upwardly, and decreasing from paper wound thereon, which consists in comminuting the mixed materials, conveying the comminuted material by a lateral air current into an upwardly projected air current of such velocity that the freeparticles of wire drop therethrough, passing the free paper particles and adhering wire and paper particles upwardly, separating the adhering particles by subjecting them to an air current of lower velocity than that of the first mentioned air current in a zone above the conflux of the air currents to thereby suspend and agitate the adhering particles, and removing the thus separated wire and paper particles from the air current. 5. A method of separating the copper and paper of disintegrated telephone cables, which consists in conveying the mixed materials by a lateral air current into an upwardly projected air current of such velocity that the free copper particles drop therethrough while the free paper particles are carried upwardly thereby, separatin the adhering copper and paper particles y suspending and agitating them in said air current and causing the separated air particles to acquire a downward momentum to pass downwardly through the upward air current.

6. A method of separating materials which consists of conveying the materials laterally in a current of air, projecting an upward current of air through the laterally moving material thereby directing the lateral current of air upwardly, to carr the material upwardly, and then decreasing the upward velocity of the combined air to cause the heavier materials to separate and fall from the'li hter'materials.

7. method of separating materials which consists of providing cross currents of air in onezone, one of said currents bearing the material to be separated and the other current being projected upwardly, directing the the velocity of the currents in another zone to allowjthe heavier material to acquire a downward momentum and drop downwardly through the first zone.

In witness'whereof, I'hereunto subscribe my'namethis 19 day of April, A. D. 1930. v CEO A. HALLAM. 

